In the empty conference room, the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter took off her silver mask, facing Zhang Yuanqing with her true appearance. Her features were eighty to ninety percent identical to his aunt's; the remaining difference lay in temperament and charm. His aunt was cute and playful, with a touch of queenly poise, whereas the Palace Master was mature and alluring with a hint of playfulness. At the same time, she carried an elusive, maternal radiance—gentle, warm, and benevolent.
This was the change brought about by her elevation in status.
Smiling, she looked at him. "What are you apologizing to me for?"
Zhang Yuanqing did not answer directly. Instead, he spoke as if to himself:
"There are some things I never confessed to you back then. I thought it unnecessary at the time, but now I want to say them.
"After being corrupted by the Fallen Holy Grail, Brother Bing and I gradually developed mental problems. The evil within our human nature began to magnify—especially our preexisting personality flaws.
"Brother Bing's were irascibility, impulsiveness, and combativeness. He became gloomy and cruel, coming to blows at the slightest disagreement, and whenever he struck, lives were lost. He killed many ordinary people because of it, and countless times placed himself in mortal danger.
"My flaw was extremism. It is the most terrifying flaw of all, always driving me to extremes over everything, making me more hot-tempered than a Fire Master and more brutal than a Bewitching Demon.
"Once, after completing a mission for the Deceitful Eye Judge, when demanding my reward, I chose 'the assistance of a Dream Master.' I hoped he could help me resolve my personality flaw. That Dream Master told me the corruption of the Fallen Holy Grail was irreversible and would inevitably drive the target mad.
"However, he could periodically soothe my extreme emotions and stimulate a particular personality flaw. That way, the Holy Grail's magnifying effect would be diverted into that single flaw."
The Palace Master of Halting Slaughter remained smiling. "So you chose lust."
Zhang Yuanqing gave a gentle nod.
"We must admit that among the many evils of human nature—greed, anger, delusion, hatred, and desire—lust causes the least harm. It neither takes lives nor robs wealth. And in society, men and women unsatisfied with their desires are everywhere. As long as I chose specific targets and found the right circles, I could minimize the harm of the Fallen Holy Grail.
"I did sleep with many women. Some were consensual, some were enticed with benefits, some were transactions... but their social status did not diminish, and they suffered no financial loss.
"I am not trying to absolve who I was back then. Rather, under the condition of corruption, I truly did my best. In fact, even with Yin Ji, I feel I owe her nothing.
"Only you, Yu'er. Only toward you can I never have a clear conscience."
Jiang Yu'er's smile persisted, though a faint sorrow surfaced in her eyes.
"After saying so much, once you were resurrected, didn't you still end up with Guan Ya?"
Zhang Yuanqing gazed at her, falling silent.
This woman had exhausted every effort for his resurrection, lowering her own status to repair his soul. She had silently guarded him during his time as the Demon Lord and offered selfless help during his time as Yuanshi Tianzun.
Her reward had been the Demon Lord's promiscuity, drifting from one woman's bed to another.
Her reward had been Yuanshi Tianzun playing dumb, falling deeply in love with Guan Ya.
After a long while, he spoke:
"I never faced our relationship head-on. Or rather, I never viewed you as a romantic partner. At times, I would notice something unusual in your feelings toward me, and at times, I felt you didn't act like an aunt at all. But over the past ten-plus years, I had long grown used to it."
Jiang Yu'er gave a soft hum of acknowledgment.
"I know. That's why I approached you as the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter, teasing you, fostering feelings and ambiguity, making you slowly develop affection and even fantasies about me. With that transition and buffer, when you finally discovered my identity, you might still resist and push back, but you wouldn't sever the ties of affection."
Zhang Yuanqing nodded slightly, a trace of tenderness flashing across his dignified face.
"You succeeded!"
He stood, walked over to Jiang Yu'er, pulled her tightly into his embrace, and whispered, "Thank you for walking with me through my life."
Jiang Yu'er did not answer. Her shoulders trembled.
***
Figures materialized one after another around the conference table—the Saints of Return of the Dead: Guan Ya, Tianxia Guihuo, Sun Miaomiao, Queen, Xie Lingxi, Zhao Chenghuang, and Brother Red Chicken.
Everyone tacitly looked toward the head of the table, seeing the Lord of the Sun seated there in solemn majesty.
In the next second, they all lowered their heads in unison, like an instinctual reaction to staring directly into the sun.
They had originally intended to ask about the Demon Lord's resurrection and how Yuanshi Tianzun had become the Lord of the Sun. Now, however, they felt they were perhaps not qualified to touch intelligence of this level.
Zhang Yuanqing spoke slowly:
"With your status, it is best not to look directly at me. Otherwise, your vision will suffer permanent damage, as will your minds."
His voice was grand and layered, as if coming from beyond the heavens, from every direction.
*Yuanshi Tianzun has truly become a great figure...* The thought flashed through Zhao Chenghuang's mind, followed by helplessness, bitterness, and joy.
After losing to Yuanshi Tianzun in last year's arena battles, proud as he was, he had constantly thought of surpassing Yuanshi Tianzun to wipe away his disgrace.
Yet the gap had only widened further and further.
His own advancement had clearly been swift enough; over the past eight months, he had risen three levels in succession to become a peak Saint.
Yet the person he had wanted to surpass was already a demigod.
By now, Zhao Chenghuang had long lost any urge to compete. Thus, his joy was heartfelt—rejoicing that a friend with whom he had walked through life and death stood at the world's highest peak, taking in sights never seen before.
Sun Miaomiao, on the other hand, felt a pang of sorrow. She felt Yuanshi Tianzun had changed so much, no longer as humorous as before, maturing as if overnight.
Xie Lingxi and Queen felt the same way. The person sitting at the head of the table seemed like the Brother Yuanshi they knew, yet also unlike him.
Still, he remained just as captivating.
Brother Red Chicken had originally wanted to shout a few praises—"Bloody brilliant!"—but the majestic image of the Lord of the Sun he had glimpsed was burned deep into his mind, keeping him from daring to raise a clamor.
He felt the natural disposition of his Fire Master class being suppressed.
Looking at his former companions, Zhang Yuanqing said, "Given your family backgrounds, you should understand the current situation, as well as my past life. To be entirely clear with you: our chances of defeating the Lord of the Stars are less than fifty percent."
The moment those words were spoken, Tianxia Guihuo sighed first. As a Spirit Realm walker of grassroots origin, his thirst for power far exceeded that of the other Saints in Return of the Dead.
With Guild Master Yuanshi Tianzun advancing to demigod, it should have been a time where all associates rose along with him. Instead, the world hovered on the brink of doomsday.
"Then what do we do!" Brother Red Chicken could not hold back after all, blurting out in anxiety.
No one paid him any mind, including Zhang Yuanqing, who continued:
"Next, the real world may experience turmoil. This is my personal guess, not derived from deduction; the Lord of the Stars has interfered with the celestial bodies, rendering all stargazing and divination useless."
Hearing this, Sun Miaomiao and Zhao Chenghuang realized the truth.
No wonder every time they had read the stars recently to deduce anything or anyone, the celestial signs had presented only chaos.
With a dignified demeanor, Zhang Yuanqing continued:
"I have placed several top-grade Saint-tier items and rule-based items in the guild warehouse. They were from my previous collection. You may each take one according to your interests and needs.
"Should turmoil truly erupt in the real world, you can rely on these items to protect yourselves."
Zhao Chenghuang, Brother Red Chicken, Tianxia Guihuo, and the others exchanged glances, bowing their heads respectfully. "Understood!"
This time, they were not receiving favors and taking orders as companions and friends, but as subordinates.
Zhang Yuanqing smiled faintly. "That will be all. Good luck to you, and good luck to me!"
The Saints of Return of the Dead felt an unspeakable sorrow and heaviness in their hearts. Yuanshi Tianzun's actions looked just like putting his affairs in order in advance—meeting old friends, giving his final instructions.
Lowering their heads, they offered their sincere blessing: "Good luck to you!"
Their figures vanished from the conference table one after another, leaving only Guan Ya.
Zhang Yuanqing looked at his girlfriend, who had remained silent and stiff-faced from start to finish, and let out a sigh.
"I have disappointed you, Sister Guan Ya!
"More than once, I mocked the Demon Lord, despised the Demon Lord, only to discover in the end that I was the Demon Lord.
"Since I must calmly accept the identity of the Demon Lord, I must also bear his karma and responsibilities. Therefore, I cannot remain faithful to one person in love."
Guan Ya remained silent for a moment before forcing a smile.
"You don't need to say this to me. I am a direct descendant of a Spirit Realm clan. In the eyes of clan descendants like us, it's completely normal for a demigod powerhouse to take many consorts.
"Demanding that a demigod remain devoted to one person is what would be whimsical and unrealistic. Fu Xue told me more than once that as your status grew higher, the women around you would only multiply, telling me to get used to it early."
Zhang Yuanqing said softly, "Yet your longing for love is different from other clan descendants. That's why you ran away from home."
Two lines of tears suddenly streamed down Guan Ya's fair cheeks. She gazed at Zhang Yuanqing—gazed at her boyfriend, not the Lord of the Sun—and gave a desolate smile.
"But if it's you, I'm willing to yield, willing to compromise..."
***
After sending Guan Ya back to reality, Zhang Yuanqing sat silently at the head of the table until his uncle in the white suit entered.
"Do you need me to bring over the women you slept with during your Demon Lord days for a group meeting?" Uncle said. "I can rap on the side to liven things up."
"How about I twist your head off to liven things up for them instead?" Zhang Yuanqing said flatly.
Not bothering to waste words on this family disgrace, he departed the Spirit Realm dungeon.
Before the final battle, there were still a few people he needed to see.
***
A primeval forest on the distant outskirts of the Capital City.
Inside a sunroom filled with exotic flora, Lingjun lay on a wicker chair, bathed in the sunlight streaming into the room. His eyes were closed, gently rocking along with the chair.
He had locked himself away in the Miao residence for three days without his sour mood improving in the slightest, and he intended to avoid seeing anyone for the rest of the year.
The revelation that Yuanshi Tianzun was the resurrected Demon Lord was gradually spreading through the official circles. Half the posts on the forum were about that, and the other half were about the Lord of the Stars.
Official members were either discussing the Demon Lord's resurrection or the Lord of the Stars' betrayal; as for the impending apocalypse, practically no one discussed it.
Because they had no idea!
This was also what the official high-level members wished to see. Middle- and lower-tier members were simply not qualified to know the truth; even at the moment the world ended, they were destined to die without knowing why.
Of course, the Spirit Realm walkers knew that Yuanshi Tianzun had become the Lord of the Sun and would engage in a decisive duel against the Lord of the Stars on behalf of the orthodox faction.
It was just that in their eyes, this was merely a standard factional clash between higher-ups.
Coming back to the point, everyone now knew that Yuanshi Tianzun was the Demon Lord. Everyone was mocking him for becoming best friends with his own 'uncle.'
Having been brilliant his whole life, the young master had never expected to stumble into the hands of a scoundrel like Yuanshi Tianzun.
Lingjun even felt the apocalypse might not be so bad. After all, socially speaking, he was already dead.
Just then, with his eyes closed, he received the message of the plants; the blossoms beside him told him an extra person had appeared in the room.
Lingjun snapped his eyes open and saw a young man bathed in golden radiance standing three meters away, looking at him with a calm expression.
Yuanshi Tianzun!
Lingjun's cheek twitched. Stubbornly meeting the Lord of the Sun's gaze, he uttered a greeting laden with profanity:
"What the hell are you doing here?"
Zhang Yuanqing smiled faintly. "As the Lord of the Sun's pickup mentor, that shouldn't be the look on your face."
Lingjun gritted his teeth. "If I had known you were that damned Demon Lord, I would have hacked you into pieces back then, even if Fu Qingyang tried to stop me."
"There's no need for that. With my current status, taking your aunt and cousin into my harem would be entirely natural. As disgraceful as the Demon Lord was, he was still far more honorable than that stud of a father of yours." Zhang Yuanqing tried his best to restore his tone and expression to what they had been.
Yet after becoming the Lord of the Sun, his face had taken on a stoic majesty. As a result, those words sounded like blatant provocation.
Lingjun took a deep breath. "Did you come here just to mock me?"
"No, to tell you something about your mother." Zhang Yuanqing said, "I can tell you with absolute certainty that the one who killed your mother was him!"
Chapter 995